Impossible
by Cheeseburger of Doom
Summary: [Warlords 9, InuKai prequel] He's a pacifist. He wants nothing more than to sit at his window and look out at the stars, but the gangs just don't work that way. He can taste happiness, but it will always slip away.


A/N: I think I must be crazy. I'm not too sure. This is the ninth story in this depressing series. This is Inui and Kaido's prequel. Poor boys. My sister wanted me to do the story where Inui and Yukimura get together in the afterlife because their respective lovers got together on Earth. -- I decided that wouldn't be very appropriate. She also drew a picture of all the poor dead characters as ghosts coming to haunt me.

Warnings: AU, much angst, violence, character death(s), immoral stuff, etc. etc.  
  
Oh -- and to find out what happens to Kaido, refer to Warlords #1.

Warlords #9:

Impossible

Kaido looked every part the bad boy. From the eyes that gave nothing away to the way that he walked, every inch of him screamed of "gang member!" When his leader Inui decided that they should all wear bandanas, to mark them, Kaido was even more frightening. He had a face that could scare small children.

Kaido Kaoru was a pacifist.

He hated the gangs. He hated everything about them, and all he wanted was to get out. That just wasn't possible, though; it was his life. The only thing that made his life tolerable was Inui.

From a very young age, Inui had looked out for him. When Inui became leader, he made Kaido his second, much to the shock and outrage of several of the other gang members. They knew that Kaido hated the fighting, even if he looked every part the thug, and they did not trust him.

Inui trusted him completely. Inui was a pacifist, as well. He wanted to change things. He wanted the gangs to be different.

"No one can remember the reason for the fighting, so why bother to keep doing it?" was his philosophy. Kaido agreed with him completely.

-----

Inui became the leader of the gang when he was just sixteen. Up until then, Kaido had never even spoken to him much. Kaido rarely spoke to anyone. He'd never learned the art of conversation. After Inui became the leader and made Kaido his second, Kaido never got a moment's peace. He hated the intrusion on his solitude, and yet...it was nice to have someone to talk to, even if he never did much talking.

It was nice to sit side by side sometimes, and watch the stars until late into the night.

-----

"You think you're so great, just because you're the leader's favorite. Well, the leader's a pansy, and you're even worse," Hiyoshi spat. Kaido's expression never wavered. He would not let Hiyoshi's words get to him; nothing that the boy said mattered in the slightest.

"Damn it, react, or something!" Hiyoshi got so angry, so easily. He wanted to be the leader; he wanted to run things his own way. There was no way he would be able to beat Inui in a fight, though. He was strong, but not strong enough. He was bitter about not being chosen by the former leader. He was bitter about a lot of things.

"I'm not going to waste my time," Kaido said, simply. He turned to walk away, but felt Hiyoshi's fingers digging into his shoulder, holding him back.

"I'll be leader, one day. When I am, you'll regret pissing me off."

Kaido brushed Hiyoshi's hand away, and left him behind. It was best to ignore Hiyoshi's threats, and not bother to get mad at him. That wouldn't do any good whatsoever.

It wasn't worth his time, anyway.

-----

There was one person that Kaido did not mind wasting his time fighting with, and that was Momoshiro. They had never gotten along, and he suspected they never would. However, he did not dislike Momoshiro as much as he disliked Hiyoshi. Momo was a nice enough person underneath all his stupidity, and Kaido respected that.

"You like to suck up to the leader, don't you?" Momoshiro sneered.

"I don't suck up," Kaido replied. "Don't be so stupid."

"Why the hell does he pay you so much attention?" Momoshiro asked. "It's almost like he's in love with you."

That was just ridiculous. "I told you not to be so stupid."

"You're the stupid one."

"What was that? Do you feel like repeating that, bastard?"

"You're the bastard."

They fought until they ran out of insults.

-----

"I'm sorry that the gang has been giving you trouble," Inui said, looking up from his book. They were in Inui's room. Kaido was perched on the windowsill, looking outside. He wondered what it would be like to look outside and see something other than broken glass and crumbled streets.

Kaido shrugged. "It doesn't really bother me."

"I care about their welfare, and I will do my best to lead them well. Why else would I bother being the leader at all? They don't understand that, though."

Kaido knew it was the truth. None of Inui's efforts were appreciated. Most, like Hiyoshi, were too power-hungry and bloodthirsty to see the true value of peace.

Peace meant freedom, and Kaido hated his prison.

"I spend more time with you than with them, because I know that you understand. I've been watching you for a long time, and you share my views on many things."

"Peace makes sense," Kaido said.

"Yes, it really does." Inui sighed, and closed the book. He'd lost all interest in it. He had no concentration, this evening. "Sometimes I wonder why I bother."

"You said it yourself. It's because you care."

That made Inui smile. "Yes, that's true. I care about many things."

"You're a good leader."

"That means something, coming from you." Inui yawned. "It's late. I think it's time to get some sleep."

"Do you mind if I stay at the window?" Kaido asked. There was no window in his room, and he wasn't tired just yet. He wanted to keep on pretending he could see somewhere else, just for a little while.

"You don't have to ask my permission to stay," Inui said. "I don't mind at all."

For some reason, the words made Kaido blush.

-----

Inui's fingers were very, very gentle, Kaido noticed.

"Thank you for helping me," Kaido said. It was almost embarrassing to have to be rescued during a fight, but he was grateful that Inui cared enough to do it; cared enough to help bandage his wounds afterward.

"I couldn't leave you there to die, Kaido. I care too much for that."

Suddenly, those gentle fingers were no longer wrapping bandages around his arm; they were turning his chin, just so -- so that Inui could look into his eyes.

"I've been watching you for a long time. I should have tried to talk to you long before I did. I'm sorry for that."

Kaido tried to look away, but Inui would not let him. "It doesn't matter," he said.

"It matters very, very much."

Kaido couldn't breathe. Inui was much too close to him...and he didn't even mind. He should have pushed Inui away, should have kept him at a distance like everyone else -- but he was tired of being alone. He was tired of being lonely. He was tired of his prison, and if there was even a hint of freedom, he wanted to run for it.

He did not protest when Inui kissed him. He kissed back. In that moment, he was very happy.

-----

Kaido was asleep and dreaming when it happened. He never woke late, but for some reason, that day he felt like staying in bed. It was cold outside, and he did not feel like looking at the broken glass and crumbled streets any more than he had to.

When Inui tried to rouse him, he grumbled something unintelligible. Inui laughed, and let him be.

"I'll come back in an hour," he said. "You'll have to get up then, or you won't get any breakfast."

Kaido drifted back to sleep very easily. When he woke again, he knew something was wrong, instantly. It had been more than an hour since Inui had tried to wake him the first time, judging by the amount of light in the room. Where was he?

Kaido dressed, and went out. He found Inui's corpse in the next room, surrounded by Hiyoshi and the other gang members.

"I finally won," Hiyoshi said. "The leadership is mine."

How was that possible? Kaido wondered, numbly. How could Hiyoshi have beaten Inui? Inui was stronger, had always been stronger.

"All of that peace bullshit made him weak," Hiyoshi said, as if he could hear Kaido's thoughts. "I never stopped practicing. The victory is mine, this time."

Kaido knelt by Inui's body. He'd never even had the chance to say goodbye. His last words to Inui had been nothing but a few grumpy mumbles.

He looked up at Hiyoshi with the same expression as always, but this time there were tears in his eyes.

"You bastard."

"That's the way the gang works, Kaido."

"Then I'm not going to be in your gods damned gang a second longer." Kaido gathered Inui's body in his arms. Inui was bigger than he was, but Kaido could handle the burden. Inui deserved to be buried somewhere special. Somewhere he would have liked. Somewhere peaceful, away from this blood bath.

"You're not going anywhere. You're dangerous to us alive," Hiyoshi said. "Kill him."

There was only one gang member that did not advance on Hiyoshi's order. It was Momoshiro. He did not try to stop him, either; Hiyoshi was the leader, after all. Kaido understood. He was grateful that Momo was even going so far as to turn his back.

After a while, Kaido stopped feeling the fists pounding into him, and the feet kicking him. He stopped feeling the pain of being beaten to death. He looked forward to oblivion.

He never expected to be saved.

His last thoughts before blacking out were of Inui, and Inui's wish for peace. It was impossible, Kaido knew; but he hoped that someday it would happen.


End file.
